Teaching an "Only" Child to Share

A mom recently brought up a scenario that I frequently hear about in one-child families. Here is her dilemma:

Her son does not have any brothers or sisters. Now that school has started, he has gotten even worse about sharing. When he goes over to someone's house, it does not take long before he wants to come home and play with "his" toys. When he has friends over, he will pull the toy or book away if the other child tries to play with it.

To tell the truth, I do not think this is a challenge that runs amuck in one-child families. It might be noticed more quickly, but all parents go through similar situations.

1. Make sure you understand the reason why your son does not like to share. Sometimes children may not know how to answer this and appear rude and selfish. Role-play. During role-playing, something said or done may click and you will understand his position. This does not mean you have to agree with it. It just provides you with more information so you can help him to help himself.

2. Try to check out the rules about sharing at childcare, school, camp and even at other children's houses. If others are not sharing, politely ask why and then explain it to your child. Maybe he is just doing what is being done to him and this is the way he is learning about the process.